Maplewood's 2000 Mazda Miata NB1 Build
Man slowly ruins NB1
Photo: Man slowly ruins NB1A 2000 Mazda Miata NB1 turned gradually into a dedicated track car
Owner maplewood documents the slow, picture-light evolution of a 32k-mile NB1 bought in 2014, from daily driver and road-trip car to a trailered, safety-equipped track day and time trial car over roughly a decade. The thread mixes maintenance mishaps, safety upgrades, and suspension changes with the owner's own self-deprecating commentary on how little planning went into any of it.
Specs
As stated in the original write-up.
- Wheels
- 6UL wheels fitted in 2015
- Lighting
- HID headlight conversion and LED DRL/turn signal conversion
- Cooling
- SuperMiata radiator replacing discolored stock unit
- Safety
- Rollbar fitted along with a new soft top
- Brakes
- TSE big brake kit installed in 2016
- Suspension
- SuperMiata Big Grip kit, later replaced with Xida coilovers
- Interior/Safety
- Crow harness and aftermarket race seat
- Body
- Singular hood vents added, cut in with a Dremel
- Suspension & Steering
- SADFab hubs fitted in 2020
- Alignment
- More aggressive track alignment and corner balance performed in 2020
- Tyres (period)
- Dunlop Direzza ZII Star Spec tires used around 2017
- Brakes (period)
- Porterfield RS4 brake pads used around 2017
- Data/Electronics
- Garmin Catalyst v1 data/video unit used for track sessions
Parts used
Parts named as used in the original write-up, grouped the way the Parts page groups them. Where one of the shops we index lists the same thing for this car, it is shown underneath with a link to the shop.
Cooling 1
- SuperMiata radiatorSuperMiata
Replaced a stock radiator that was discoloring, fitted in preparation for track use
Suspension & Steering 3
- SuperMiata Big Grip suspension kitSuperMiata
Fitted to improve track handling, later replaced
- Xida coiloversXida
Replaced the Big Grip kit, eliminated feel of a mid-corner bump at Firebird East
- SADFab hubsSADFab
Fitted in 2020 for safety after seeing videos of wheel failures
Brakes 2
- TSE big brake kitTSE
Installed in 2016 for track use
In the shops
ND Stage 4 Big Brake Kit ↗
Flyin' Miata· $2,158.00 USD
NA/NB Stage 3 Big Brake Kit ↗Flyin' Miata· $2,117.00 USD
NA/NB Stage 4 Big Brake Kit ↗Flyin' Miata· $2,667.00 USD - Porterfield RS4 padsPorterfield
Used for first track day in 2017
In the shops
Porterfield R4S Brake Pads, Front (1990-93) ↗Flyin' Miata· $119.00 USD
Porterfield R4S Brake Pads, Rear (1994-02 size) ↗Flyin' Miata· $105.00 USD
Porterfield R4S Brake Pads, Front (1994-02 size) ↗Flyin' Miata· $119.00 USD
Wheels & Tyres 2
- 6UL wheels
Fitted for the track-oriented build in 2015
- Dunlop Direzza ZII Star Spec tires
Used for first track day in 2017
Body & Trim 3
- Rollbar
Installed for track safety along with a new soft top
- Soft top
Replaced at the same time as the rollbar install
In the shops
Genuine Mazda Boot Lid Weatherstrip Seal (Soft Top) ↗
MazSpec MX-5 Spares & Accessories· £46.98 GBP
Genuine Mazda Front Anti-Roll Bar D-Bush – MX-5 NC Soft Top • NE51-34-156 ↗MazSpec MX-5 Spares & Accessories· £12.53 GBP
Soft Top Handle ↗Betaset (France)· €17.16 EUR
- Singular hood vents
Added in 2020, cut in by hand with a Dremel
In the shops
Singular Motorsports Hood Louvers (NA) ↗Flyin' Miata· $299.00 USD
Singular Motorsports Hood Louvers (NC) ↗Flyin' Miata· $299.00 USD
Singular Motorsports Hood Louvers (NB) ↗Flyin' Miata· $299.00 USD
Interior 2
- Crow harnessCrow
Fitted for track safety in 2018, lap belt adjustment was awkward
- Race seat
Fitted for track safety in 2018, described as uncomfortable
Electrical 3
- HID headlight conversion
Converted headlights to HID in 2015
In the shopsFactory HID Headlight Assembly, Left ↗Motorsport Auto (The Z Store)· $897.87
Factory HID Headlight Assembly, Right ↗
Mitsubishi Evo 9 GSR OEM HID Headlights - Pair ↗Jap Performance Parts· £1,179.17 GBP - LED DRL/turn signal conversion
Converted turn signals to LED DRLs/signals in 2015
In the shops
LED Rear Turn Signal Bulbs (1156A) ↗Flyin' Miata· $49.99 USD
LED Turn Signal Bulbs (7440A/7443A) ↗Flyin' Miata· $49.99 USD
LED Front Turn Signal Bulbs (1157A, pair) ↗Flyin' Miata· $49.99 USD - Garmin Catalyst (v1)Garmin
Used for on-track video and data logging, later paired with AI-assisted video rendering
Other 1
- Truck and trailer
Bought in 2018 to haul the car to track days so it no longer needed to be street legal
Photos
40 pictures collected from the write-up, in the order they were posted, shown from Man slowly ruins NB1. A picture opens larger here, with the way through to the page it is on.
Man slowly ruins NB1 - Miata Turbo Forum - Boost cars, acquire cats. 39this post at Man slowly ruins NB1 ↗
Man slowly ruins NB1 - Miata Turbo Forum - Boost cars, acquire cats. 1this post at Man slowly ruins NB1 ↗
How it was done
Starting condition
Maplewood bought a 32,000-mile 2000 NB1 Miata in 2014 for about $8,000 as a first manual car, replacing a broken turbo Volvo 940. It was his first stick-shift car and he admits to stalling constantly at first.
Early ownership and move to Arizona
Soon after buying it, he found the Miata impractical as a Northeast daily driver and relocated to Arizona. The trip exposed a fuel line leak near the charcoal canister, fixed with help from a seller known as Mike. He joined a local cruising group, added 6UL wheels, HID headlights, and LED signal conversions.
Move toward track use
Frustrated with the cruising group's focus on photos rather than driving, he leaned toward track days, fitting a rollbar and new soft top, and swapping in a SuperMiata radiator in preparation.
First track days and safety upgrades
In 2016 he installed a TSE big brake kit, then ran his first track day in 2017 with ProAutoSports on stock suspension, Dunlop ZII Star Spec tires and Porterfield RS4 pads. In 2018 he added a harness and race seat for safety, though both were uncomfortable, and experienced a coil failure on track.
Suspension and setup changes
He fitted a SuperMiata Big Grip suspension kit, later replacing it with Xida coilovers after finding a recurring mid-corner bump at Firebird East too unsettling. A rear-end collision while loosely harnessed taught him to keep harnesses snug.
Becoming a dedicated track car
After buying a tow truck and trailer in 2018, the Miata no longer needed to be street-usable. He removed the air conditioning, added Singular hood vents cut in with a Dremel, fitted SADFab hubs for safety, and had the car aligned and corner-balanced more aggressively for track use.
Continued track progress
Through 2020 onward he progressed through run groups from Red to Green and kept doing regular time trials and track days, dealing with occasional failures like a snapped belt and a melted factory header/cat. He later began using a Garmin Catalyst data system and AI-assisted video analysis to review his sessions.
A summary in our own words. The full account, with all its detail, is in the original write-up: read it at Man slowly ruins NB1 ↗
Worth knowing
- An angle grinder would have made cutting hood vents far easier than a Dremel
- Keep harnesses snug even on short trips, a loose harness still lets you hit hard in a low-speed impact
- Full race safety gear is uncomfortable for street or daily use
- Packing track gear loosely in the car for a long time isn't great for the rollbar's finish